Qazax District (; az, Qazax rayonu) is one of the 66
districts
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...
of
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
. It is located in the north-west of the country and belongs to the
Gazakh-Tovuz Economic Region. The district borders the district of
Aghstafa, and the
Tavush Province
Tavush ( hy, Տավուշ, ) is a province of Armenia located at the northeast of Armenia, bordered by Georgia from the north and Azerbaijan from the east. Internally, Tavush borders the Gegharkunik Province from the south, Kotayk Province from ...
of
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
. Its capital and largest city is
Gazakh
Qazax (; ) is a city in and the capital of the Gazakh District of Azerbaijan. It has a population of 20,900. Gazakh is a city and administrative district in the west of Azerbaijan, the "western gate" of Azerbaijan.
History
Early history
In ...
. As of 2020, the district had a population of 98,400.
It has two
exclave
An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...
s inside
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
, which include the villages of
Yukhari Askipara
Yukhari Askipara ( az, Yuxarı Əskipara, lit=Upper Askipara; hy, Վերին Ոսկեպար, lit=Upper Voskepar, translit=Verin Voskepar) is a destroyed Azerbaijani village in an exclave of the Qazakh District of Azerbaijan, currently under contr ...
,
Barkhudarly,
Sofulu. Both of the exclaves and parts of mainland Qazax District (the villages of
Baghanis Ayrum,
Ashaghi Eskipara,
Gyzylhajily, and
Kheyrimli) were captured by Armenian forces during the
First Nagorno-Karabakh war
The First Nagorno-Karabakh War, referred to in Armenia as the Artsakh Liberation War ( hy, Արցախյան ազատամարտ, Artsakhyan azatamart) was an ethnic and territorial conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in th ...
.
History
![Exclaves of Qazakh](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/Exclaves_of_Qazakh.png)
The region was conquered by a succession of neighboring powers or invaders, including
Sassanid Persians
The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th centuries AD. Named ...
, the
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
, the
Arabs
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Wester ...
, the
Seljuq Turks
The Seljuk dynasty, or Seljukids ( ; fa, سلجوقیان ''Saljuqian'', alternatively spelled as Seljuqs or Saljuqs), also known as Seljuk Turks, Seljuk Turkomans "The defeat in August 1071 of the Byzantine emperor Romanos Diogenes
by the Turk ...
, the
Georgians
The Georgians, or Kartvelians (; ka, ქართველები, tr, ), are a nation and indigenous Caucasian ethnic group native to Georgia and the South Caucasus. Georgian diaspora communities are also present throughout Russia, Turkey, G ...
, the
Mongols
The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal membe ...
, the
Timurids
The Timurid Empire ( chg, , fa, ), self-designated as Gurkani ( Chagatai: کورگن, ''Küregen''; fa, , ''Gūrkāniyān''), was a PersianateB.F. Manz, ''"Tīmūr Lang"'', in Encyclopaedia of Islam, Online Edition, 2006 Turco-Mongol empire ...
, the
Qara Qoyunlu
The Qara Qoyunlu or Kara Koyunlu ( az, Qaraqoyunlular , fa, قره قویونلو), also known as the Black Sheep Turkomans, were a culturally Persianate, Muslim Turkoman "Kara Koyunlu, also spelled Qara Qoyunlu, Turkish Karakoyunlular, Eng ...
and
Aq Qoyunlu
The Aq Qoyunlu ( az, Ağqoyunlular , ) was a culturally Persianate,Kaushik Roy, ''Military Transition in Early Modern Asia, 1400–1750'', (Bloomsbury, 2014), 38; "Post-Mongol Persia and Iraq were ruled by two tribal confederations: Akkoyunlu (Wh ...
Turkoman tribes, and finally
Safavid Iran
Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...
. It was also ruled by
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
between 1578 and 1607 and again 1722 and 1735.
By the end of the XV century, the
Kazakh Sultanate
Kazakh sultanate or Gazakh sultanate was established at the end of the 15th century. During the Safavid Empire, it was part of the Karabakh principality. In 1605, by the decree of Abbas the Great, Shamsaddin sultan of Kazakh was given the ran ...
was established as a sovereign geopolitical entity in the region. Though it was part of the
Karabakh principality during the
Safavid Empire
Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...
, Sultan Shamsaddin of Gazakh was given the rank of
Khan by the decree of
Abbas the Great
Abbas I ( fa, ; 27 January 157119 January 1629), commonly known as Abbas the Great (), was the 5th Safavid Shah (king) of Iran, and is generally considered one of the greatest rulers of Iranian history and the Safavid dynasty. He was the third son ...
in 1605.
After the
Russo-Persian War (1804-1813)
The Russo-Persian Wars or Russo-Iranian Wars were a series of conflicts between 1651 and 1828, concerning Iran, Persia (Iran) and the Russian Empire. Russia and Persia fought these wars over disputed governance of territories and countries in th ...
, the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
gained control of the area by virtue of the
Treaty of Gulistan
The Treaty of Gulistan (russian: Гюлистанский договор; fa, عهدنامه گلستان) was a peace treaty concluded between the Russian Empire and Iran on 24 October 1813 in the village of Gulistan (now in the Goranboy Distri ...
. Under Russian rule, it was part of
Tiflis Governorate
The Tiflis Governorate was a province ('' guberniya'') of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire with its administrative center in Tiflis (present-day Tbilisi). In 1897, it constituted 44,607 sq. kilometres in area and had a population ...
before forming the northeastern part of the
Kazakh Uyezd
The Kazakh uezd was a county (''uezd'') of the Elizavetpol Governorate of the Russian Empire and later of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic with its center in Kazakh (present-day Qazax) from 1868 until its formal abolition in 1929 by the Soviet a ...
of the
Elisabethpol Governorate
The Elizavetpol Governorate, also known after 1918 as the Ganja Governorate, was a province ('' guberniya'') of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire, with its capital in Yelisavetpol (present-day Ganja). The area of the governorate st ...
in 1868. A contemporary military historian noted the following ethnographic detail: "Abbas Mirza's route lay through the country of the great tribe of the Casaks, which is extremely strong and thickly wooded." He further notes that: "These have no connection with the
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
n
Cossacks
The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...
. They are descended from men of the Kirgis Casaks, left by
Genghis Khan
''Chinggis Khaan'' ͡ʃʰiŋɡɪs xaːŋbr />Mongol script: ''Chinggis Qa(gh)an/ Chinggis Khagan''
, birth_name = Temüjin
, successor = Tolui (as regent)Ögedei Khan
, spouse =
, issue =
, house = Borjigin
, ...
. They are frequently called
Karapapakh
The Karapapakhs or Tarakama ( az, Qarapapaqlar, Tərəkəmələr; tr, Karapapaklar, Terekemeler) are a Turkic people, who originally spoke the Karapapakh language, a western Oghuz language closely related to Azerbaijani and Turkish. Nowad ...
, from wearing black sheep-skin caps."
When the South Caucasus came under British occupation, Sir
John Oliver Wardrop, British Chief Commissioner in the South Caucasus, decided that assigning the
Erivan Governorate
The Erivan Governorate was a province (''guberniya'') of the Caucasus Viceroyalty (1801–1917), Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire, with its centеr in Erivan (present-day Yerevan). Its area was 27,830 sq. kilometеrs, roughly correspondin ...
and the
Kars Oblast
The Kars Oblast was a province (''oblast'') of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire between 1878 and 1917. Its capital was the city of Kars, presently in Turkey. The ''oblast'' bordered the Ottoman Empire to the west, the Batum Oblast ...
to
Democratic Republic of Armenia
The First Republic of Armenia, officially known at the time of its existence as the Republic of Armenia ( hy, Հայաստանի Հանրապետութիւն), was the first modern Armenian state since the loss of Armenian statehood in the Middle ...
(DRA) and the Elisabethpol and
Baku
Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
Governorates to the
Azerbaijan Democratic Republic
The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic), or simply as Azerbaijan in Paris Peace Conference, 1919–1920,''Bulletin d'Information de l'Azerbaidjan'', No. I, September 1, 1919, pp. 6–7''125 H.C.Debs.'', 58., February 24, 1920, p. 1467. Caucasian Az ...
(ADR) would solve the region's outstanding disputes. However, this proposal was rejected by both Armenians (who did not wish to give up their claims to Gazakh, Zangezur (today
Syunik), and
Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh ( ) is a landlocked country, landlocked region in the Transcaucasia, South Caucasus, within the mountainous range of Karabakh, lying between Lower Karabakh and Syunik Province, Syunik, and covering the southeastern range o ...
) and Azerbaijanis (who did not wish to give up their claims to
Nakhchivan). As conflict broke out between the two groups, the British left the region in mid-1919.
Population
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
During the
First Nagorno-Karabakh War
The First Nagorno-Karabakh War, referred to in Armenia as the Artsakh Liberation War ( hy, Արցախյան ազատամարտ, Artsakhyan azatamart) was an ethnic and territorial conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in th ...
, Armenian troops took control of several villages of the Gazakh District. Several Azerbaijani inhabitants were killed during the war although some of them were able to flee.
In July 2020, Gazakh became a site for
clashes with Armenia.
List of historic and tourist sites
There are 112 protected monuments in the region of Gazakh, of which 54 are archaeological, 46 are architectural, 7 are historical, and 5 are of artistic significance. Historic and tourist sites in this region include:
* ''The House of the Poet
Samad Vurgun
Samad Vurgun ( az, Səməd Vurğun ; born Samad Yusif oghlu Vekilov;, . March 21, 1906 – May 27, 1956) was an Azerbaijani and Soviet poet, dramatist, public figure, first People's Artist of the Azerbaijan SSR (1943), academician of Azerbaijan Na ...
'' in Yukhari Salahli village, since 1976.
* ''The Museum of History and Ethnography'', since 1984.
* ''The Gazakh State Picture Gallery'' by the Ministry of Culture of
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
, since 1986.
* ''The Memorial museum of
Molla Panah Vagif
Molla Panah ( az, Molla Pənah), better known by his pen-name Vagif (), was an 18th-century Azerbaijani poet, statesman and diplomat. He is regarded as the founder of the realism genre in Azerbaijani poetry. He served as the vizier—the minist ...
and
Molla Vali Vidadi'', since 1970.
* ''The House of Teachers Seminary of Gazakh'', built in 1910, functioned between 1918 and 1959.
* ''The Bath House of Israfil Agha'', built in the first decade of the 20th century by Israfil Agha Kerbelayev from the village of Kasaman.
* ''The Damjili Caves'', in the village of Dash Salahli, south-east of the mount Avey, cover an area of 360 km
2 and refer to
Middle and
Upper Paleolithic
The Upper Paleolithic (or Upper Palaeolithic) is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. Very broadly, it dates to between 50,000 and 12,000 years ago (the beginning of the Holocene), according to some theories coin ...
,
Mesolithic
The Mesolithic (Greek: μέσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic is often used synonymous ...
and
Neolithic
The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...
eras.
* ''Sining Korpu (The Broken Bridge)'' ( az, Sınıq körpü), a 12th-century bridge built over the Ehram (Khram) river in the village Ikinji Shikhli.
* ''Didevan Castle'' ( az, Didəvan qalası), a 6th-7th century monument in the village of Khanliglar.
* ''
Mount Goyazan'' ( az, Göyəzən dağı), a rare archaeological monument in the village of Abbasbeyli, rises 857.9 metres above sea level.
* ''The Baba Dervish Habitation'', an archaeological site in the village Demirchiler.
* ''The Kazim Bridge'' in the village of
Yukhari Askipara
Yukhari Askipara ( az, Yuxarı Əskipara, lit=Upper Askipara; hy, Վերին Ոսկեպար, lit=Upper Voskepar, translit=Verin Voskepar) is a destroyed Azerbaijani village in an exclave of the Qazakh District of Azerbaijan, currently under contr ...
, allegedly built during the reign of Shamsi Khan.
* ''The Juma Mosque'' of Qazakh, built in 1902 by Akhund Haji Zeynalabdin Mahammadli oghlu from the village of Kasaman.
* ''The Aslanbeyli Mosque'' built in 1909 by Hamid Efendi, the native of village Aslanbeyli.
* ''Santepe'', an archaeological site dating to the 9th-8th centuries B.C. and the Iron Age.
* ''The Gazakhbeyli Hills'', an archaeological site dating from the 8th-6th centuries B.C. near the village of Gazakhbeyli.
* ''The Shikhli Human Camp'', an archaeological site near the village of Birinji Shikhli.
* ''Shakargala'', in the Gazakh region.
Prominent people from Gazakh
*Sabir Azeri (1938-2010) - Writer, author of best-selling books.
*
Aliagha Shikhlinski
Ali Agha Ismail Agha oghlu Shikhlinski ( az, Əli Ağa İsmayıl Ağa oğlu Şıxlinski;); – )Dates indicated by the letters "O.S." are in the Julian calendar with the start of year adjusted to 1 January. All other dates in this article are in ...
- (1865–1943) general-lieutenant of the artillery, known as "God of Russian artillery".
*
Farrukh Gayibov - (1889–1916) the first Azerbaijani pilot, was awarded the 4th class order of "Saint Georgi".
*
Ibrahim agha Vekilov - (1853–1934) general, the first Azerbaijani military topographer.
*
Javad bey Shikhlinski
, native_name_lang =
, birth_name = Javad bey Mammad agha oghlu Shikhlinski
, other_name =
, nickname =
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Aşağı Salahlı, Kazakh uezd, Elizavetpol Governorate, Caucasus Viceroyalty (1801 ...
- (1876–1940) general-mayor, the commander of the division.
*
Ibrahim bey Usubov
Ibrahim bey Musa Agha oghlu Usubov ( az, İbrahim bəy Musa Ağa oğlu Usubov; March 6, 1872 – June 16, 1920) was an Azerbaijani Major General in Russian Imperial Army and Azerbaijan Democratic Republic.
Early life
Ibrahim bey Usubov was born ...
- (1872–1920) general-mayor, the commander of the division.
*
Mirza Huseyn Afandi Qayibov
Mirza Huseyn Afandi Qayibov ( az, Mirzə Hüseyn Əfəndi Qayıbov) - Azerbaijani clergyman, literary critic, publicist, enlightener and Mufti of the Caucasus (1884-1917). He was the author of 4-volume work on Azerbaijani literature.
Early li ...
- (1830–1917) the Chair of the Ecclesiastical Department of Transcaucasia.
*
Molla Vali Vidadi - (1707–1809) prominent poet of Azerbaijan.
*
Molla Panah Vagif
Molla Panah ( az, Molla Pənah), better known by his pen-name Vagif (), was an 18th-century Azerbaijani poet, statesman and diplomat. He is regarded as the founder of the realism genre in Azerbaijani poetry. He served as the vizier—the minist ...
- (1717–1797) prominent poet of Azerbaijan and social figure.
*
Mukhtar Hajiyev
A mukhtar ( ar, مختار, mukhtār, chosen one; el, μουχτάρης) is a village chief in the Levant: "an old institution that goes back to the time of the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman rule". According to Amir S. Cheshin, Bill Hutman and Avi M ...
- (1876–1938) the first chairman of Azerbaijan Central Executive Committee in 1921
*
Samad Vurgun
Samad Vurgun ( az, Səməd Vurğun ; born Samad Yusif oghlu Vekilov;, . March 21, 1906 – May 27, 1956) was an Azerbaijani and Soviet poet, dramatist, public figure, first People's Artist of the Azerbaijan SSR (1943), academician of Azerbaijan Na ...
- (1906–1956)
National Poet of Azerbaijan
National may refer to:
Common uses
* Nation or country
** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
* National, Maryland, ce ...
(the first who deserved this title)
*
Vidadi Babanli - (1927-)
National Writer of Azerbaijan
*
Osman Sarivelli Osman is the Persian transliteration and derived from the Arabic masculine given name Uthman (name), Uthman ( ar, عُثْمان, , link=no ''‘uthmān'') or an English surname. It may refer to:
People
* Osman (name), people with the name
* Osma ...
- (1905–1990) national poet of Azerbaijan.
*
Mehdi Huseyn
Mehdi Ali oglu Huseynov – famed under the pseudonym Mehdi Huseyn ( az, Mehdi Hüseyn; 17 April 1909 – 10 March 1965) was an Azerbaijani and Soviet writer and critic, laureate of the State Stalin Prize of the third degree (1950) and member of ...
- (1909–1964)
National Writer of Azerbaijan. Prominent writer-dramatist, critic.
*
Mirvarid Dilbazi - (1912–2001) national poet of Azerbaijan
*
Amina Dilbazi Amina Pasha qizi Dilbazi ( az, Əminə Dilbazi; 26 December 1919, Qazakh, Azerbaijan – 30 April 2010, Baku, Azerbaijan) was an Azerbaijani folk dancer.
Biography
Cousin of poet Mirvarid Dilbazi, Amina Dilbazi was born in a rural community near ...
- (1919–2010) ballet-master.
National Artist of Azerbaijan
National may refer to:
Common uses
* Nation or country
** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
* National, Maryland, ce ...
.
*
Elazan Bayjan (Haji Hasanzadeh) - (1913–1989) poet-doctor. Set up private medical clinics in Freyburg, Germany.
*
Ismayil Shykhly
Ismayil Shykhly ( az, İsmayıl Şıxlı; March 22, 1919 – July 26, 1995), also known by his birth name Ismayil Shikhlinsky Gahraman oglu ( az, İsmayıl Şıxlınski Qəhrəman oğlu), was an Azerbaijani writer.
Early years
Shykhly was born o ...
- (1919–1995)
National Writer of Azerbaijan, scientist- pedagogue, social-political figure.
*
Elmira Huseynova - (1933–1995) sculptor.
*
Fatma Vekilova Fatma may refer to:
*Fatima (given name)
*Fatma (surname)
*Fatma (TV series)
''Fatma'' is a 2021 Turkish crime drama streaming television series directed by Özer Feyzioğlu and Özgür Önürme and starring Burcu Biricik, Uğur Yücel, Mehme ...
- (1912–1987) professor, doctor of geology-mineralogy sciences.
*
Sayad Zeynalov Sayad may refer to:
* Sayyid
''Sayyid'' (, ; ar, سيد ; ; meaning 'sir', 'Lord', 'Master'; Arabic plural: ; feminine: ; ) is a surname of people descending from the Islamic prophet Muhammad through his grandsons, Hasan ibn Ali and Hu ...
- (1886–1942) deserved 4th class "Saint Georgi" order
*
Teymur Bunyadov
Timur was a 14th-century Southern- Central Asian Turkic-Mongolian ruler and warlord also known as Tamerlane (from ''Timur the Lame'' or the Persian expression of the same meaning, ''Timur-e-Lang'') in the western world.
Taimur or Timur may als ...
- (1928) academician, historian-ethnographer.
*
Tahir Isayev
Taher ( ar, طاهر) (spelled Tahir and Tahar in English and French, Тагир in Russian; Pashto,Urdu and Persian: طاهر,; ) is a name meaning "pure" or "virtuous". The origin of this name is Arabic. There are several Semitic variations tha ...
, a.k.a. Serafino - (1922–2001)
*
Ali Mustafayev
Aly Mustafayev Mustafa oglu ( az, Alı Mustafayev Mustafa oğlu) (April 14, 1952 – November 20, 1991) was an Azerbaijani journalist and reporter during the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Early years
Mustafayev was born on April 14, 1952, in Qazakh ...
- (1952–1991)
National Hero of Azerbaijan
The National Hero of Azerbaijan ( az, Azərbaycan milli qəhrəmanı) is the highest Hero (title), national title in the Republic of Azerbaijan. The title was named on 25 March 1992, and the "Qizil Ulduz" Medal awarded as a sign of receiving this t ...
.
References
External links
Official website of Gazakh District
{{coord missing, Azerbaijan
Qazax District
Districts of Azerbaijan